20 quizzed on 'Gandhi's head'
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, April 16 2012:
The police have launched a massive manhunt to pull up the miscreants, who removed the head of a statue of Mahatama Gandhi in the heart of Ukhrul district headquarters.
Twenty suspects have been picked up for questioning, SP of Ukhrul police K Kabib said and exuded confidence that the real culprits would be nailed in the next couple of days.
In the wee hours of Sunday the statue of Mahatama Gandhi erected at 'Gandhi Chowk' close to Ukhrul town hall was found 'beheaded' forcing the police to launch the crackdown.
Around the same time two stone plaques of MGNREGS affixed at two different places at Phungreitang area in the town were also damaged.
The destroyed statue of the 'Father of the Nation' is now covered with a rug and the district administration is likely to take steps to repair the statue soon.
"An FIR on the matter has been registered and we are leaving no stones unturned to pull up the miscreants.
As part of our investigation twenty suspects have been pulled up and questioned," the SP told this reporter today morning.
"Since we have established some leads, we are sure that the culprits would be pulled up very soon, possibly within the next couple of days," the police officer said.
A large number of Tangkhul-Naga civil society organisations based at the district, while condemning the incident, have demanded fitting punishment of the culprits.